Ronaldinho arrested in Paraguay over fake passport claims | OneFootball

Brazil and Barcelona legend Ronaldinho has been arrested after allegedly using a false passport to enter Paraguay.

The 39-year-old World Cup winner was detained along with his brother Roberto in the Resort Yacht & Golf Club Paraguayo on Wednesday, the Ministry of Interior of Paraguay has confirmed.

According to Paraguayan outlet La Nación, fake Paraguayan passports were found in the hotel bearing the names of both brothers.

The pair were kept in the hotel suite overnight and an earlier statement from the Paraguayan police stated that Ronaldinho had been invited to Paraguay by casino owner Nelson Belotti for publicity purposes.

Ronaldinho doesn’t have a Brazilian passport currently after he was hit with an environmental fine in 2018.

Back in 2015, the former Barcelona star and his brother were convicted of illegally building a fishing trap at Lake Guaiba without proper licensing in a permanent preservation area.

In November 2018 they were handed an $8.5m fine but after failing to pay up, Ronaldinho’s passport was rescinded by Brazil’s superior court of justice, leaving him unable to leave the country.

Despite that, the 97-cap ex-Brazil international was unveiled as one of the country’s new ambassadors for tourism in September last year.

“Tourism is very important for generating jobs and regaining our image internationally,” he said at the time.

The Paraguayan authorities are expected to make a statement regarding his arrest on Thursday.